IMPORTANT POINT
[The court established that the Mamlatdar has exclusive jurisdiction over tenancy and mundkar matters, and emphasized the necessity for timely disposal of cases to alleviate the backlog affecting the judicial system.]

JUDGMENT/ORDER

M.S.SONAK, J. - Heard Mr Shane Gomes Pereira, who appears with Mr Sujay Kamulkar for the petitioners and Mr D. Pangam, learned Advocate General who appears along with Mr Geetesh Shetye and Mr Shivdatt Munj, learned Additional Government Advocates for the State.

2. Rule in both these petitions. The Rule is made returnable immediately at the request of and with the consent of the learned counsel for the parties.

3. In both these petitions, the immediate relief was to issue a Writ of Mandamus directing the Joint Mamlatdar of Bardez to dispose of the tenancy/mundkar proceedings pending before him expeditiously and preferably within a time-bound schedule.

4. Having regard to the facts and circumstances set out in the two petitions, there was no difficulty in issuing the mandamus as prayed for. Even the learned Advocate General made a statement that the Joint Mamlatdar of Bardez would dispose of the proceedings within six months. This statement was accepted, and the respective Joint Mamlatdars were directed to act accordingly. However, these petitions were not disposed of because we were informed that several tenancy and mundkar cases are pending before the Mamlatdars and the Joint Mamlatdars and further, there was a delay in disposal of such matters, primarily because the Joint Mamlatdars or the other authorities constituted under the tenancy and mundkar laws were occupied in several executive functions, as a result of which, there was no sufficient time to attend to these matters.

5. Accordingly, we directed the State to place on record the statistics of the pendency position in the districts of North Goa and South Goa.

6. The Under Secretary (Revenue) filed affidavits dtd. 3/10/2022 and 17/2/2023, placing on record the pendency statistics. Along with this affidavit and even otherwise, this Court was apprised of specific orders issued by the Government to deal with the pendency of matters under the Tenancy and Mundkar laws.

7. The Goa Agricultural Tenancy Act 1964 is an Act to regulate the terms of tenancy with respect to agricultural lands in the State of Goa and for matters connected therewith. This Act is a measure of "agrarian reform" enjoying substantial constitutional immunity. Similarly, the Goa Mundkars (Protection from Eviction) Act, 1975 was passed to provide for better protection to mundkars against eviction from their dwelling houses and granting them rights to purchase the same and to make certain other provisions connected therewith. Both these legislations are admittedly beneficial legislations enacted to benefit the agricultural tenants and mundkars.

8. Under the Goa Agricultural Tenancy Act, 1964, if any question arises whether any person is or was a tenant or should be deemed to be a tenant, then such question has to be decided by the Mamlatdar under Sec. 7 of the said Act. Similarly, a question as to whether any land is or is not used for agricultural purposes is also to be decided by the Mamlatdar. Sec. 8 imposes a bar to the eviction of tenants and restoration of possession. Sec. 8A empowers the grant of relief to a tenant in cases of threatened wrongful dispossession. The jurisdiction under Ss. 8 and 8A is also to be exercised by the Mamlatdar.

9. Sec. 10 of the Goa Agricultural Tenancy Act, 1964, provides for surrender by a tenant before a Mamlatdar. Ss. 11 and 12 are concerned with the termination of tenancy, and Sec. 14 is concerned with the heritability of the tenant's rights. Here again, the jurisdiction in such matters is vested in the Mamlatdar.

10. Sec. 18A of the Goa Agricultural Tenancy Act, 1964 provides that on the tillers' day, every tenant shall, subject to the other provisions of this Act, be deemed to have purchased from his landlord the land held by him as a tenant and such land shall vest in him free from all encumbrances subsisting on the said day. Again, all powers to consider issues arising under Sec. 18A are, for that matter, under the Chapter IIA of the said Act and are vested in t